SUSTAINABILITY
Our Impact
Over + Above is a collective of scientists, elite sportsmen, designers, product developers and supply chain experts working collaboratively with external stakeholders to ensure that all our development and manufacturing choices are anchored to UNSDG12 (Responsible Production and Consumption).
We don’t view sustainability as a nice to have, but as a crucial and essential discipline that we must all embrace for the benefit of our planet and its people. At Over + Above, we incorporate sustainability into every aspect of our development and production processes as it is our responsibility and obligation as a brand to minimise the negative impact on the environment.
UNSDG12
Focusing on UNSDG12 ensures that our strategy is rooted in the wider global agenda and by converging on 3 of the targets, we can make meaningful and impactful business decisions.
12.2 Achieving the sustainable management and efficient use of natural resources.
12.5 Substantially reducing waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling and reuse.
12.8 Ensuring people everywhere have the relevant information and awareness for sustainable development and lifestyles in harmony with nature.
https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/sustainable-consumption-production/
OUR PILLARS
As an emerging sportswear brand, our environmental footprint is small, but that hasn’t stopped us creating a framework centred on mapping our entire supply chain. Having visibility of where all our components, fabrics and products are made, we can have full transparency of all our suppliers and the potential impact those materials and processes have on the planet and people involved in manufacturing.
To help achieve our objectives, we focus on 3 pillars of impact: planet, people, and product by committing to.
PLANET
Protecting the planets resources by sourcing responsibly
Minimising water consumption, reducing CO2 emissions and not using toxic chemicals and plastic in our products.
PEOPLE
Respecting human rights, promoting fair, safe and dignified work irrespective of race, religion, culture or sexuality.
PRODUCT
Designing durable product with an extended life cycle by using good quality materials and construction methods.
Mapping our supply chain, helps us monitor compliance against our ethical and environmental standards, progress on corrective actions and identifying areas that need improvement.
SUPPLY CHAIN MAPPING
TIER 1 - Primary Production Site
Finished Goods manufacturers (Cutting, sewing, and finishing). Ships finished goods directly to O+A
TIER 2 - Process integral to production
Partial production processors (printing)
TIER 3 - Enhancement Processes
Dyers, printers
TIER 4 - Fabric and Components
Fabric manufacturers, spinners, weavers, knitters, finishers, components (heat transfers, elastics, zips, silicone, packaging etc.)
TIER 5 - Raw materials
Textile fibers
SOURCING
1. Design Process
We are committed to making informed decisions in our design and product development strategy by focusing on durability, is fit for purpose, choosing low impact textiles and packaging and aftercare advise.
2. Material Selection
Synthetic fibres are the most used fibres in sportswear as they are durable, versatile and can be engineered with enhanced performance properties for the athlete. It is also well documented that the raw material extraction and conversion production processes of synthetic fibres are historically the most polluting of all fibres. In the last few years, new technologies have contributed significantly to mitigate some of the negative impacts on the planet by reducing CO2 emissions, excessive water usage, toxic effluence and the elimation of toxic dyes. Which is why Over + Above only work with progressive mills that have in-house R&D, internal audit and reporting systems and maintain third party accreditation such as BlueSignR
3. Our Suppliers
Supply chains are often complex and fragmented in the fashion industry. It is important for us to work with suppliers that already had third party accreditation and proximity to each other. We therefore chose the Far East mainly due to the closeness of the traceable materials, components, and the technical competency of the manufacturing unit.
